Turkish opposition retains key cities in local elections 99.37% of votes counted

In Türkiye, the municipal elections were held on March 31, and 99.37 per cent of votes have been counted so far, according to Türkiye's Supreme Election Board (CEC) as per the TRT Haber report.

The opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leads with 37.71 per cent of the votes, followed by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) with 35.53 per cent.

Mansur Yavas, a candidate from the CHP party, is currently in the lead in the capital, Ankara, with 60.29 per cent of the votes. In Istanbul, opposition candidate Ekrem Imamoglu is leading with 51.05 per cent, while in Izmir, Semil Tugay of the AKP won with 48.9 per cent of the votes.

Across the country, 24 AKP candidates and 35 СHP candidates have been elected as mayors in various cities. 12 and 14 candidates have won in big cities and municipalities, respectively.

The preliminary results of the elections are expected to be announced by Türkiye's Supreme Election Commission on April 1.

Voters in Türkiye's larger cities cast their votes for metropolitan municipality mayor, municipality mayor, city council members, as well as mukhtars and elder councils. Those cities include the capital Ankara, Istanbul, and Izmir — the nation’s three largest cities by population — as well as Adana, Antalya, Aydin, Balikesir, Bursa, Denizli, Diyarbakir, Erzurum, Eskisehir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kahramanmaras, Kayseri, Kocaeli, Konya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mersin, Mugla, Ordu, Sakarya, Samsun, Sanliurfa, Tekirdag, Trabzon, and Van.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Türkiye’s local elections concluded in a "manner befitting our democracy,” describing the democracy and national will as the “winner" of the polls.

"March 31, is not an end but a turning point for us. In the local government elections, the Turkish nation again used the ballot box as an opportunity to convey its messages to the politicians," Erdogan said in his address to the citizens.

"Regardless of the results, the winner of this election is primarily our democracy, the national will," he said. "All 85 million people, regardless of their political affiliation, won the election marathon and Türkiye was the winner before the candidates."

The president also stressed that his governing Justice and Development (AK) Party "did not get the result" it wanted and hoped for in the elections.

He added that there is "nothing greater than the power of nation’s will."

He repeated his motto of "there is a fate above the fate," adding: "We will not disrespect our nation's will. We will not be stubborn. We will weigh the steps in an unbiased way. Ending this election is a gain for us. We have four years ahead. We are aware of our responsibilities. We will now work on resolving urgent issues, from the recovery of earthquake-hit regions to economic issues," he stated.

The president highlighted that they would steer away from "populist" steps that would harm the nation and future generations. He repeated his earlier pledges on recovery of the economy and "dealing the fatal blow to the terrorist organization," in reference to the PKK.

CHP leader Ozgur Ozel said that the outcome of the elections will "not be a defeat for anyone."

"There is no loser in this victory. Our success is not a defeat for anyone, it will not be a defeat for anyone," Ozel said.

He encouraged all citizens to not feel like they were defeated no matter which party they voted for in the polls.